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Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Matt
Lauer greets fans at NBC's "Today" show. "Today" is one of the most
profitable shows on television. (Ben Gabbe / Getty Images)

By Stephen Battaglio

LA Times

How did TV news programs and networks fare in the 2014 battle for viewers?

The television news business is trying hard to catch up with rapidly changing technology.

Americans
are getting more of their news from their Twitter feeds, friends'
Facebook posts and websites such as Reddit. There are live bloggers who
chronicle events as they unfold — now they can even stream live video
with their smartphones.

But TV news is still overwhelmingly
watched on televisions. Although the landscape has become more
challenging, TV news can still be a lucrative endeavor. The morning
shows each generate hundreds of millions of dollars in advertising
revenue for their networks.

The evening newscasts remain vital to
each network's image, and after years of fighting off irrelevancy, are
now seeing a ratings renaissance. Cable news outlets are big profit
centers for their corporate parents, and while their audience levels
appear to have plateaued, they can still set the agenda for what the
country will be talking about.

The
pressure to hire personalities was on ABC News when the contracts for
the entire team of its No. 1 morning show "Good Morning America" were
all up within a year of each other. By April, ABC secured new deals for
lead anchors Robin Roberts, George Stephanopoulos and Lara Spencer.
(Fred Lee / Getty Images)

Every
day and night, these programs and networks battle for viewers'
attention. Here is how they fared, according to Nielsen, in 2014:Morning showsUnlike any other news program, the nation's morning shows have always hinged entirely on personalities. So
the pressure was on ABC News when the contracts for the entire team of
its No. 1 morning show "Good Morning America" were all up within a year
of each other. By April, ABC secured new deals for lead anchors Robin
Roberts, George Stephanopoulos and Lara Spencer.

But the network
did not come to terms with newsreader Josh Elliott and longtime weather
forecaster Sam Champion, leading to their departures and a potential
disruption in the alchemy that helped "Good Morning America" topple
NBC's "Today" in the ratings after 16 years of also-ran status.

Champion
was replaced in December 2013 by his backup, Ginger Zee, and Amy
Robach, a frequent substitute for Elliott, was promoted to his spot in
March. GMA never missed a beat, finishing as the most-watched morning
show for the second-consecutive full year with an average of 5.5 million
viewers through Dec. 15, a 12% advantage over NBC's 4.8 million."When
we had to make changes, we made very quick and bold decisions," said
Tom Cibrowski, senior vice president for ABC News and former executive
producer of "Good Morning America."The folks at "Today" have to be a little envious over how seamlessly "Good Morning America" absorbed its cast changes.

The
NBC show's inner maneuverings have been gossip column fodder since the
fouled-up handling of Ann Curry's exit from the anchor chair in July
2012, which resulted in a ratings plunge.

NBC's
"Today" show's inner maneuverings have been gossip column fodder since
the fouled-up handling of Ann Curry's exit from the anchor chair in July
2012, which resulted in a ratings plunge. (Peter Kramer / AP)

This
fall, NBC hired Jamie Horowitz, a production whiz from ESPN, to oversee
a total revamp of the program. But after word leaked out that he wanted
to do a clean sweep of the anchor desk — angering the talent and his
bosses — he was shown the door.Even in second place, "Today"
remains one of the most profitable shows in television and still pulls
in a higher rate than "Good Morning America" for its commercial time,
thanks to the legacy of its brand name. Matt Lauer, popular among
viewers, extended his contract for two more years.

But competitors
believe "Today" needs a new, consistent plan of attack if it wants to
return to No. 1. "Good Morning America" has seen its ad revenues grow by
30% since it took over the top spot in 2012.

The third-place
program, "CBS This Morning," actually had the highest percentage gain in
viewers during 2014 — up 7% to 3.1 million. But it was down 4% among
key 25-to-54-year-old viewers that advertisers want to reach, falling
well behind "Good Morning America" and "Today."

MSNBC has worn out
those tired faces like Chris Matthews and Laurence O'Donnell. These
guys don't know how to entertain. Americans are worn out with sorting
through the same tired issues. Matthews and O'Donnell need to do a
'joint show' in which they're paired on a...

IdaTarbell

Anchors
Charlie Rose, Norah O'Donnell and Gayle King earn kudos from critics
and viewers who prefer the program's newsier approach, and executive
producer Chris Licht said he has no plans for drastic alterations."It's
an absolute concern and it's something that we look at," Licht said of
the lagging 25-54 demo rating, which he believes will grow over time.
"We're still in a building phase. These things take time. The mission
here is to do news."

Nightly newsNow that
viewers can watch news as it happens throughout the day on a mobile
device, the nightly evening newscast feels like it should be an outdated
remnant from the era of Big Three TV network hegemony.

But in 2014, each of the programs saw audience gains.

Anchors
Charlie Rose, Norah O'Donnell and Gayle King of "CBS This Morning" earn
kudos from critics and viewers who prefer the program's newsier
approach, and executive producer Chris Licht said he has no plans for
drastic alterations. (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times)

"Not
only are rumors of our death greatly exaggerated — we are a growth
stock," NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams said in a recent
interview. "And I have a secret theory that perhaps the best thing that
happened to us is the rise of other media devices. The miniaturization
of everything else has made us loom a little larger."Williams'
program is up 5% to an average audience of 8.9 million viewers. "ABC
World News Tonight With David Muir" is up 6% to 8.1 million, while "CBS
Evening News With Scott Pelley" rose 4% to 6.8 million. Among 25- to
54-year-olds, Muir's broadcast is the biggest gainer, up 8%, pulling up
even with Williams for the lead.The ratings boost may be the
result of having three programs — which once routinely summarized the
same events in lockstep — that are more distinctive from each other than
they have been in recent memory.

"ABC plays to its strengths with
a faster pace and a higher story count," said Steve Capus, executive
producer of the CBS Evening News.

"CBS
has a smaller number of stories and we go deeper with our journalism.
Brian is an immensely talented personality and NBC strikes a middle
ground," he said. "Each of us is giving our audiences different options
and that's not always been the case."

Cable newsWhile
evening network newscasts are resilient, the maturing cable news
business now finds itself coping with audience erosion. Fox News
Channel, CNN and MSNBC all saw slippage in their average viewing levels
for the total day.

The bright spot was for Fox News Channel, No. 1
in cable news for the 13th consecutive year. Fox grew its audience by
2% among 25- to 54-year-olds in prime time thanks to Megyn Kelly, who
took over the channel's 9 p.m. slot in October 2013. Her show, "The
Kelly File," improved the time period by 10% and ended three-straight
years of prime-time declines in the demographic.

FNC towered over
other cable news channels in prime with 1.76 million viewers, which
includes 301,000 in the 25-54 demographic. CNN averaged 515,000 viewers —
a 9% decrease; and 181,000 in the demographic, which is about even with
2013. MSNBC averaged 590,000 viewers, down 8% — and its demo audience
declined 17% to 169,000.

CNN
has made a tactical decision to supplement its news coverage with
original series programming aimed at drawing younger viewers who are
more appealing to advertisers.

The episode premieres of CNN series
with Anthony Bourdain, Lisa Ling and John Walsh were time-period
winners. As weekly entries launched in eight-episode batches, such shows
can't be expected to move the ratings needle as much as a star
personality who is on every weeknight. Nevertheless, CNN's new approach
helped it surpass MSNBC for second place among the 25-to-54 demo in
prime time.

Fox
grew its audience by 2% among 25- to 54-year-olds in prime time thanks
to Megyn Kelly, who took over the channel's 9 p.m. slot in October 2013.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

The
NBC-owned channel is most likely to see an overhaul in 2015, as its
lineup of progressive-leaning political talk shows have faded."We're
going to get out in America — and outside of dysfunctional Washington —
and pursue the full range of stories that American families are
interested in," said MSNBC president Phil Griffin.

About Me

Actor, Casting Director, Director, Broadcaster, Writer, Singer, Artistic
Director, Dramatur, Producer, Professor, Coach, Husband, Grandfather, Marketing
Professional and life long student Art Lynch joined the staff of John Robert
Powers in 1999. Lynch is also an adjunct professor at the Community College of
Southern Nevada, the Morning Edition Weekend Host for Nevada Public Radio and
one of 67 individuals who represent 126,000 actors as a member of the Board of
Directors of the Screen Actors Guild. He is the past president of the Nevada
Branch of the Screen Actors Guild and of the Professional Audio/Visual Communications
Association. A resident of Nevada since 1984, Lynch has an MA in Communications
from UNLV and a BA in Theater, Speech and Mass Communications from the
University of Illinois, Chicago. He is currently pursuing post-graduate studies
in theater, education and the entertainment industry. Art Lynch studied and
practiced the craft of acting in Chicago and California before settling in
Nevada. With his wife Laura, Art owned and operated a successful marketing
company with national clientele. Art was personally responsible for casting and
directing over 1,000 commercials and industrials, as well as assisting on film
and television projects in many ways. His career also includes earning awards
as a wire service, magazine and broadcast journalist. He is most proud,
however, of his daughters. Ann is a PhD in neuroscience and Beth is the proud
mother of his grandchildren, Evan and Elijah.

Short Film Festival

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